Ha Seok-ju

Ha Seok-ju (Korean: 하석주; born 20 February 1968) is a South Korean football manager and a former player. He was known for being one of the few left-footed players in South Korea during his time, which made him stand out on the field. Today, he works to guide and train other football players, sharing his experience and skills to help them improve. His journey from player to coach shows how dedication to the sport can lead to a long and meaningful career.

International career

Ha Seok-ju played for the South Korea national football team. He took part in the 1994 FIFA World Cup and the 1998 FIFA World Cup. In the 1998 World Cup, he scored the first goal in the game against Mexico with a free kick. However, he was removed from the game soon after for a bad tackle. South Korea conceded three goals after he left. Because of this, he could not play in the next game against the Netherlands, and South Korea lost that match by a large score. He returned for the final game against Belgium, helping Yoo Sang-chul score an important goal with another free kick. Although he helped score both of South Korea's goals in the 1998 World Cup, some fans were unhappy with him because of the early removal from the game.

Career statistics

Club

International

Results list South Korea's goal tally first.

List of international goals scored by Ha Seok-ju

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	9 June 1991	Seoul, South Korea	1	Indonesia	3–0	3–0	1991 Korea Cup
2	11 June 1991	Seoul, South Korea	2	Malta	1–0	1–1	1991 Korea Cup
3	16 June 1991	Seoul, South Korea	4	Egypt	1–0	2–0	1991 Korea Cup
4					2–0
5	27 July 1991	Nagasaki, Japan	5	Japan	1–0	1–0	Friendly
6	28 April 1993	Ulsan, South Korea	11	Iraq	1–0	2–2	Friendly
7	11 May 1993	Beirut, Lebanon	13	Lebanon	1–0	1–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
8	13 May 1993	Beirut, Lebanon	14	India	3–0	3–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
9	15 May 1993	Beirut, Lebanon	15	Hong Kong	1–0	3–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
10	5 June 1993	Seoul, South Korea	16	Hong Kong	3–1	4–1	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
11	7 June 1993	Seoul, South Korea	17	Lebanon	1–0	2–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
12	9 June 1993	Seoul, South Korea	18	India	6–0	7–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
13	16 October 1993	Doha, Qatar	22	Iran	2–0	3–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
14	28 October 1993	Doha, Qatar	26	North Korea	3–0	3–0	1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
15	1 October 1994	Hiroshima, Japan	40	Nepal	1–0	11–0	1994 Asian Games
16					8–0
17	25 September 1996	Seoul, South Korea	52	China	3–1	3–1	Friendly
18	22 January 1997	Brisbane, Australia	60	Australia	1–2	1–2	1997 Opus Tournament
19	2 March 1997	Bangkok, Thailand	62	Thailand	2–1	3–1	1998 FIFA World Cup qualification
20	4 October 1997	Seoul, South Korea	73	United Arab Emirates	1–0	3–0	1998 FIFA World Cup qualification
21	13 June 1998	Lyon, France	82	Mexico	1–0	1–3	1998 FIFA World Cup
22	26 April 2000	Seoul, South Korea	86	Japan	1–0	1–0	Friendly
23	26 April 2001	Cairo, Egypt	92	Egypt	1–0	2–1	2001 LG Cup

Honours

Ha Seok-ju achieved many awards during his time as a player. With Ajou University, he was the runner-up in the Korean National Championship in 1986. At Daewoo Royals B, he won the Korean National Championship in 1990. With Daewoo Royals, he won the K League 1 in 1991 and 1997, and the Korean League Cup in 1997. While playing for Pohang Steelers, he was the runner-up in the Korean FA Cup in 2001 and 2002. With the South Korea national team, he helped them earn third place in the AFC Asian Cup in 2000.

Individually, Ha earned many honors. He was named the Most Valuable Player and top goalscorer of the Korean National Championship in 1990. He was selected for the K League All-Star team in 1991, 1995, 1997, 2001, and 2002. He was part of the best team of the K League 1 in 1996 and was chosen for the FIFA World XI in 1997, as well as the AFC Asian All-Star team the same year. As a manager, he was named K League Manager of the Month in July 2014.